Have you a problem like this? You spray a commercial window cleaner onto glass. You wipe it off using a paper towel expecting the window to be clean and sparkling. But, the paper towel comes away leaving streaks, dullness or even worse – the window still has those spots and smudges on the glass that you were trying to clean off.
Cleaning windows seems like it is more than a chore at times. It seems like there must be a magic trick to getting windows to sparkle. For many people, they rely on commercially prepared products that include ingredients like ammonia or other toxic ingredients. Some people are highly allergic to the smell of cleaning chemicals and cannot use these products.
What is the solution? Do you just give up on having sparkling windows around your house and get used to peeking out at the view by ignoring those spots and smudges? You can get your window clean without offensive toxic odors or chemicals. Here are some ingredients to use to make the best cleaning products available.
Mix Your Own
Vinegar is an all-natural, non-toxic ingredient most people have lying around the house. You can clean your windows using some of this and a few old newspaper pages. This is a pretty good tip and even professional window cleaners or glass installers abide by it! If it is good enough for them, imagine how good it will be for you.
Use distilled white vinegar as your base. Mix it with water. Use more water than vinegar. A simple recipe is to use 2 cups of water and ¼ cup vinegar. Adjust the mixture more or less depending upon how much you are cleaning.
Add the mixture to a spray bottle. Re-purpose a clean one that you have from an emptied container or buy a spray bottle at any store that sells cleansers or home goods. If you do not have a spray bottle, you can mix the two ingredients in a bucket.
This method is only viable if you have a squeegee tool with a sponge on one side and a rubber blade on the other. It will be too hard to apply the mixture to the glass using the newspaper from a bucket.
Spritz the glass with the mixture and wipe it off with a sheet of newsprint. You will notice immediately that the glass comes away brilliantly clean and sparkling.
Do not worry about the odor. Vinegar will smell until it dries which takes a short time. All you will be left with is windows so bright you will wonder why you did not clean them with vinegar sooner.
For an even better cleaner or for those times when you need to do the exteriors of windows, add some dishwashing detergent to your mix. Using the ratio described above you can add about ½ teaspoon of detergent to provide the cleanser with an added boost.
When doing the outside windows be sure to use a bucket for the mixture. Also have a scrub brush with soft, non-abrasive bristles on hand. You also want to rinse the mixture off the windows so use your garden hose or, if you have one, a power-washer hose at a low setting.
Use Ready-made Products or Homemade Products
The best window cleaners are yours to determine based on your preferences or needs. Commercially available, ready-made products are fine in most instances. They do the work you need them to do. However, if you are sensitive to chemicals you can often get better results using simple non-toxic ingredients like water and vinegar that you mix yourself.
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